In Observe and Report, Seth Rogen plays the kind of deranged mall security guard who wants to carry automatic weapons on the job. It’s a high-concept, original premise…that we saw back in January, when Paul Blart: Mall Cop stormed multiples. Uh-oh. Rogen and director Jody Hill (The Foot Fist Way) set the Report straight.—mickey rapkin

When did you realize there was another mall-cop movie being made?

ROGEN: We knew the whole time, actually. And we’re friends with those guys, so we would literally send each other pictures of the wardrobe, just to make sure we weren’t stepping on each other’s toes. They’re totally different movies.

Very true. For example: Paul Blart** doesn’t hinge on a Polaroid of a fat man’s penis. But Blart**** has made $100 million and counting. **

ROGEN: It’s probably a good thing. The world is ready for mall cops!

HILL: I’m glad their movie made money. But either way, we’d have struggles with a dark comedy like this.

No kidding. You’ve said this is a comedic Taxi Driver:** There’s heroin, an alcoholic mom, and some seriously grim sex.**

ROGEN: After seeing The Foot Fist Way, it seemed clear Jody was great at these oddly epic tales about very sad characters. And that’s exactly what Taxi Driver and a lot of those early Scorsese movies are. That’s what we were going for.

Seth, is this the first time you cried on-screen?

ROGEN: I don’t know if you saw my Dawson’s Creek episode…

I think I missed it. Was there anything the studio said you couldn’t** do here? I mean, Seth is having sex with Anna Faris while she’s got her own vomit on her face.**

HILL: Seth gave the studio this speech that was pretty badass. It was basically like, “We’re allowed to do whatever we want. We’re allowed to go as far as we want. And that’s the only requirement we have—that you guys don’t fuck with us.” And to Warner Bros.’ credit, they lived up to their promise.

ROGEN: It would have just sucked otherwise. We make movies for pretty cheap. And the trade-off is we should be able to do whatever the hell we want. This is, like, a $20 million movie. It seems unfathomable to me that over the course of the next ten years, this movie won’t make its money back on DVD and cable deals. That conversation was just: “Don’t pretend we’re making a different movie than we’re actually making.”

By the way, what’s it like to be felt up by Anna Faris?

ROGEN: I cannot believe the shit that she does in this movie. It was a joy to work with someone that committed to making a scene as funny as it could possibly be. It’s the type of performance I don’t think a lot of women would do. She plays a terrible person. And there’s no vanity to it at all.

HILL: She was always requesting props. Like, during the date scene, it was really important to her to have a shrimp cocktail so she could be stuffing her face.

ROGEN: She was eating shrimp the whole scene! Which is just so gross.

**Ray Liotta plays the villain. I’ve never been able to put my finger on what’s so awesomely creepy about that guy. Have you? **

ROGEN: I have no idea—and if I could, I would not say it in this interview.

So how are the focus groups liking Observe and Report****?

ROGEN: They are split, I will say. It’s the type of movie people feel very strongly about—either negatively or positively. I don’t mind focus groups. I’m used to people saying they hate me—though at the last one, I actually went right up to someone who said he hated me and told him to go fuck himself.

Really?

I didn’t do it until after the focus group. So it didn’t affect the scores in any way.

Nice. You’ve given Michael Peña (Crash, World Trade Center)** a Jheri curl and a lisp. What made you think he could be funny?**

ROGEN: That performance has a real Mike Tyson feel to it.

HILL: We basically wanted to take all the legitimacy he’s worked so hard for and flush it down the toilet.

**Seth, you’ve lost a ton of weight preparing for _The Green Hornet. _**What’s been the reaction?

HILL: I’m proud of Seth. But I’m a little mad at him, too. Because now I just feel bad about myself.

ROGEN: Danny McBride has had a severe look of disappointment. Like, a genuine look of “What the fuck happened to you?” It’s like one of those Germany movies where all the friends are like, “Fuck those Nazis!” And then one of them finally becomes a Nazi. Isn’t that_ Swing Kids_?

Did you consider slimming down for_ Observe and Report_****?

SETH: Generally, before a movie, I’ll think, “A lot of people hypothetically may see this film. I should probably try to keep some semblance of control.” But not here. I paid particularly little attention to what I was eating. It was kind of a free-for-all. Jody didn’t mind.

Last question: You gonna screen Observe and Report** for security guards?**

HILL: The security guard is the uniform the movie wears. But it’s less about the day-to-day antics than it is about this one personal character.

ROGEN: They should screen it for mentally ill people. That’s really what it’s about.